#NorthKorean laborer in Russia jumped to death, couldn't stand exploitation. Had to pay large sums of money to the #KimJongUn regime, the company prez, etc. If can't pay due to lack of work in winter, it becomes debt. Was only able to save $1k in 4 yrs.https://t.co/5HtrkZpQVe
— Tara O (@DrTaraO) April 18, 2019
I have no love for the Kim regime, but I am no fan of raiding their embassies like this either. This is a slippery slope I don’t think the US wants to encourage. How easy would it be for someone like Putin to create militant activist groups to raid other nation’s embassies for intelligence purposes if this type of activity is encouraged?:
Reuters has reported that U.S. authorities have arrested a former U.S. Marine who is a member of a group that allegedly raided the North Korean embassy in Madrid in February and stole electronics.
KBS World Radio
Citing sources familiar with the arrest, Reuters said that Christopher Ahn was arrested Thursday and appeared Friday in federal court in Los Angeles.
The group called Free Joseon, formerly known as Cheolima Civil Defense, is blamed for the February 22nd embassy raid.
Reuters did not say whether Ahn played a role in the raid but noted he is a member of the group.
The name Christopher Ahn has not previously been mentioned in media reports related to the embassy raid.
Reuters said the U.S. Justice Department has declined to comment on the arrest.
You can read more at the link.
Just another example that the Israeli do not play around when it comes to bad actors plotting against them:
North Korean missile experts who worked on Syrian weapons development were killed and wounded in an Israeli airstrike in Syria, according to an Israeli media report.
Korea Times
Debka File, an Israeli defense media outlet, reported the airstrike, which hit the Scientific Studies and Research Center in the Syrian town of Masyaf on Saturday, killed and wounded weapons experts from North Korea and Belarus as well as Iranian and Syrian military officers. It said the missile technicians were hired to upgrade Syrian missiles, citing Western intelligence sources. It did not state the exact number of casualties.
AFP, meanwhile, wrote the attack was carried out early Saturday and killed several Iranian military personnel and wounded 17 Syrian troops and their allies.
“North Korean engineers were working on the production of solid fuel, while Belarusians were in the pay of Syria’s Organization of Technological Industries,” Debka File reported.
“Especially targeted were the sections working on the upgrade of Syrian and Hezbollah surface missiles, the production of solid fuel for those missiles and the departments focusing on installing new guidance instruments to enhance their precision.”
You can read more at the link, but long time ROK Heads may remember that Israel killed North Korean nuclear specialists back in 2007 in another bombing strike.
Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.
North Korea earns more revenue from its laborers in Russia than it does from its laborers in any other jurisdiction. Any DPRK workers that remain in Russia after December 22, 2019 would be doing so in violation of UNSCR 2397 (2017). https://t.co/ZrKqYS0qcq
— Jason Arterburn 艾杰生 (@jasonarterburn) April 16, 2019
It is pretty surprising that Samsung’s new foldable phone would have this many problems right before its release:
A number of U.S.-based tech reporters reviewing Samsung Electronics’ potentially game-changing mobile device, the Galaxy Fold, reported faults after just a few days of use.
Joong Ang Ilbo
Reporters from CNBC, Bloomberg and The Verge have each tweeted pictures and videos showing faults with the folding screen of the Galaxy Fold devices they were given this week to review ahead of the phone’s U.S. release on April 26.
Steve Kovach, tech editor for CNBC, tweeted in the early hours of Thursday morning, Korea time, a video of his Galaxy Fold that showed the left hand of the screen flickering and flashing white with a bold black line splitting the screen in two, presumably along the point where the screen folds when it is closed. The video was captioned “After one day of use…”
The Galaxy Fold is designed to open like a book to become a 7.3-inch display tablet. The cover of the phone — the front when it is folded — is a 4.6-inch screen that works like a conventional smartphone. In all three reported cases, it is this internal folding screen that was defective.
You can read more at the link.
Notices how the goals of all these plans are always way out in the future when no in power will be held responsible for not meeting them:
South Korea’s industry ministry said Friday it will significantly cut the country’s dependency on conventional energy sources, such as coal, and move toward environment-friendly resources for sustainable growth.
Yonhap
During the public hearing for a draft of the country’s energy master plan, the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy said it will expand the portion of renewable sources to around 30 to 35 percent in its portfolio by 2040, significantly up from 7.6 percent posted in 2017.
The master plan is renewed every five years with a 20-year goal.
The ministry is expected to draw up details on the scope of the reduction in its energy supply plan that will be announced later this year.
The proposal is in line with the Moon Jae-in government’s push to move toward clean and safe energy sources to meet the country’s demand for electricity.
“The new policy goal will focus on reforming the structure of energy demand instead of expanding the supply,” the ministry said, claiming the master plan aims to build a high-efficiency and low-consumption energy market.
You can read more at the link.
The long talked about summit between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un will happen next week likely in Vladivostok:
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will visit Russia later this month for talks with President Vladimir Putin, Russian news service RIA Novosti reported Thursday, citing the Kremlin.
Yonhap
Kim will make the visit at Putin’s invitation, the news service and other Russian news outlets quoted the Kremlin as announcing in a press release. The report did not give further details, including dates and the venue of the summit between Kim and Putin.
Speculation has been rising that the two leaders would hold their first summit in Russia’s Far East city of Vladivostok next week when Putin travels to the Far East on his way to China for an international conference.
Japan’s Kyodo News, citing unidentified officials sources, reported that Kim plans to make a three-day visit to Russia beginning on Wednesday. Kyodo said that Kim plans to travel by train and hold a summit with Putin on Russky Island off the city of Vladivostok.
You can read more at the link.
I would not be surprised if the Kim regime intentionally made sure this was captured on satellite imagery just to further pressure the US to cut a “pretend denuclearization” deal with them:
Commercial satellite imagery from last week shows activity that could indicate the movement of radioactive material at North Korea’s main nuclear facility, a U.S. think tank said Tuesday.
Yonhap
The April 12 imagery shows five specialized railcars near the uranium enrichment facility and the radiochemistry laboratory at the Yongbyon nuclear site, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“In the past these specialized railcars appear to have been associated with the movement of radioactive material or reprocessing campaigns,” it said in a report.
“The current activity, along with their configurations, does not rule out their possible involvement in such activity, either before or after a reprocessing campaign,” it added.
You can read more at the link.
